Question about the final Hail Mary

Does anyone else think even if the Hail Mary had worked that it would have been overturned due to an illegal forward pass? I've watched it several times frame by frame and it Cutler's foot was definitely over the LOS and it looked like the ball was still in his hand when it passed through the plane of the LOS.

So... in reality you DON'T have to throw the ball from behind the LOS. You just have to make sure not to go more than a couple feet beyond it? I'm pretty sure I've seen more than one completed pass overturned with less than the QB's whole body beyond the LOS.

Out of the NFL's rule book:
It is a forward pass from beyond the line of scrimmage if the passer’s entire body and the ball are beyond the line of scrimmage when the ball is released, whether the passer is airborne or touching the ground. The penalty for a forward pass

It wouldn't have been turned over because you can't challenge a penalty (or lack thereof) correct? Since they didn't throw a flag during the play i don't think there's anything they could've done about it.

anyone else notice the 2 times the closk was still running when it should have stopped. Once when bears receiver ran out of bounds, and the other when they "reviewed" the catch with 1.5 minutes left, we snapped the ball and they blew it stopped, then restarted wayyyy to early after they confirmed the catch.

anyone else notice the 2 times the closk was still running when it should have stopped. Once when bears receiver ran out of bounds, and the other when they "reviewed" the catch with 1.5 minutes left, we snapped the ball and they blew it stopped, then restarted wayyyy to early after they confirmed the catch.

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I don´t know about the one when a Bears receiver went out of bounds, but the started the clock absolutely correctly after the Nelson catch (the stoppage occured because a practice ball was on the field).

I don´t know about the one when a Bears receiver went out of bounds, but the started the clock absolutely correctly after the Nelson catch (the stoppage occured because a practice ball was on the field).

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So is this a way to get a clock stoppage when running to the line in hurry up mode? allows the offense to get set? Almost like letting a fan run on to the field to get a time out like happened many years back?

The call used to be predicated on the position of the ball relative to the LOS at the point of release. The rule was changed after Don Majkowski beat the Bears on a controversial call. I thought it was now based on the position of the feet at the time of release. That is incorrect.

I fail to understand why they changed the rule in this way. The Majkowski play highlighted how difficult it is to note the position of the throw unless the camera is shooting right down the LOS. The current rule makes the call no easier.

Common sense would dictate it should be based on foot position where there's a better chance of making the right call upon replay. Go figure.

I replayed that a couple of times too. Cutler's back foot was clearly behind the LOS. I think the rule should be both feet behind the LOS at the point of release. But that would be a rule helping the D and we don't want to do that!

They do review scoring plays but I'm not sure if that would be part of what they would review. IMO it should be...

It wouldn't have been turned over because you can't challenge a penalty (or lack thereof) correct? Since they didn't throw a flag during the play i don't think there's anything they could've done about it.

The call used to be predicated on the position of the ball relative to the LOS at the point of release. The rule was changed after Don Majkowski beat the Bears on a controversial call. I thought it was now based on the position of the feet at the time of release. That is incorrect.

I fail to understand why they changed the rule in this way. The Majkowski play highlighted how difficult it is to note the position of the throw unless the camera is shooting right down the LOS. The current rule makes the call no easier.

Common sense would dictate it should be based on foot position where there's a better chance of making the right call upon replay. Go figure.

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No kidding. If they can use foot position to determine whether a shot is a 3 pointer or 2 pointer, why can't a foot on the LOS be used to determine a legal pass? It would make the rule more objective and concrete that way.

Well, they did ditch the "Tuck Rule" this past off season. Long overdue. They must have figured sufficient time had passed so as not to discredit the Patriots' championship. That's small vindication for Charles Woodson; more like opening an old wound. I guess we could say he did not have a good year all the way around.

That was a legal pass but what SHOULD have been called was Jordy getting layed out 9 yards down field on the 4th and 8! Even though it was beautiful and Cobb scored, if he drops it the game is over when Jordy was flattened in plain site in the middle of the field.

Does anyone have any definite confirmation that the rule for illegal forward pass actually changed after 1989? I hear it all the time and I'm not saying its not true but I've never seen anything that confirms it to where I don't wonder if its just urban legend that has grown over time kind of like people thinking that we wouldn't haven't made the playoffs in 2010 without Desean Jackson's punt return beating the Giants.

Only reason I ask is that if you watch that game ending (YouTube search for Bears Packers replay game 1989), the announcer continuously harps on the back foot being behind the line which would lead one to think that he believed this made it a legal pass.

I find it odd that a commentator would incorrectly assume this is the rule. If I didn't know that it actually is the rule now I would assume that the entire body, or at least the ball, has to be behind the line.

This is from the Wikipedia article of the 1990 season, listing major rule changes before the season:

The penalty for an illegal forward pass beyond the line of scrimmage is enforced from the spot where any part of the passer's body is beyond the line when the ball is released.

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Thanks! That's kind of an odd way how they worded it, though. It makes it sound like its a penalty if any part of the body is past the line, when in fact its opposite and not a penalty if any part of the body is still behind the line.

Maybe they've been misinterpreting and mis-enforcing the rule all this time.